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32 comments:
West coast culture in the late 1980's was that of racial strife, political activism and gangs. This was reflected in the growing hip-hop community in Los Angeles, CA.
Spawning sub genres of gangsta rap and g-funk, the west coast was instrumental in the late 1980's and early 1990's in bringing to the forefront, very real issues within the black community.
The way they did this was with energy and emotion. Matching the delivery and power of KRS-One, gangsta rap provided equal energy but a different message.
The message could be detailed or base in thought, but NWA said it best with "Fuck the Police."
Historically, the black community is very centralized and localized within a certain area, however, Los Angeles is the definition of urban sprawl and lack of a central black community. Some scholars argue that the rise of hip-hop and gangsta rap helped the black people of LA to become a black community as opposed to a refuge of people of color.
As hip hop originated in NYC, it quickly jumped to the west coast, Los Angeles in particular where it gained appeal from the black community. It picked up so fast because artists like N.W.A. and Eazy-E were talking about things that their listeners were feeling. They took hip hop and put their own flavor into it and branched off into sub genres like gansta rap and g-funk and made a name for themselves.
West coast culture had a huge impact on Hip Hop. Prior to the west coast swag, artist of the era focused on social change and awareness by talking about the struggles of African Americans through there music. The stories and struggles of the artist from opposing coast differed from each other and as a result their musical stories were also different. Artist of both coasts wanted to encourage social conscientiousness and activism by telling their stories, they each had different methods of achieving the same goal. West coast rappers told the tales of the streets as they saw it, despite the harshness of their realities. The gritty nature of the stories needed to be heard but those who were resistant to change and who didn't want to hear an accurate description of the plight of the people criticized the art form and labeled it inappropriate. I believe gangsta rap was met with such a strong opposition because its message was powerful and accurately reflected the frustrations of the people. The emotion embedded within the lyrics were powerful enough to result in an uprising of the people that could have threatened the structure of the government. The government recognized the strength of the movement and immediately became committed to silencing the voice of rebellion and revolt.
Hip hop music began in the Bronx in the 1970s. The first gangsta rapalbum to become a mainstream pop hit. N.W.A.'s controversial subject matter, including drugs, violence and sex, helped popularize what became known as gangsta rap. The rivalry between east and west coast rap raised several labels to another level. The tension between Death Row and Bad Boy increased as both labels released a series of scathing tracks blatantly filled with insults, threats, and accusations targeted at the opposing labels. The rivalry ended when 2Pac was fatally shot. The rivalry combined with the rise of gfunk helped several artist become extreamly popular.
Hip hop originated in the bronx and began to become worldwide. The west coast began to pop up on the map as the 80's emerged. the West coasts music seemed to focus on being a gangster and the troubles that people in the hood went through. From being oppressed to the police brutality. I feel that west coast rap really paved the way for gangster rap because of the things they talked about in their lyrics. I also think it was the beginning of the "beef" the beef betweent the east and west coast rappers began and it turned out very tragically witht the deaths of 2pac and biggie. And this still seems to go on between rappers today.
Well west coast culture derived in the latter part of the 1980's in New York. As the communities began to grow and expand about the troubles associated with gangs, violence, sex, money, drugs, and etc... Hip hop comes into effect as different situations occurred within families and community. So much feeling, and emotion tagged the hearts of others to where gangsta rap and gfunk were "born"! These forms provided a deeper and more personalized look into the lives of those who knew the message had to be carried out on a much larger scale.
West Coast culture impacted hip hop in an extreme way. They created new genres of rap such as "gangsta" rap. Gangsta rap was a type of rap that encourage social change and let the world know what was going on in the black community. The west coast seemed to have a different approach to getting their messages out there they werent holding anything back they wanted things to be very clear and not to sugar coat anything. I think that during this time which was the late 1980's and the the early 1990's groups like NWA were making it clear that blacks were not being treated fairly and things needed to change. I think through out their messages it was opening the eyes of the black community. one of the things that also came from the west coast culture was the west coast east coast beef.
The west coast culture impacted hip hop by creating a way for people from this era to express the way they felt about the things that were going on in the community at this time. Since there was so much gang activity at this time, this music made it that much easier for their opinions to be expressed. This music embodied the surroundings of the west coast. Another influence of the west coast was the introduction of gangsta rap. This type of music was more hard core and straight to the point. It was very raw and real and brutally honest.
The messages that were left by gangsta rappers were that of empowerment and straight forwardness. Artist from this time were able to express how they felt without second guessing what the next person was going to say. The music of these artist needed to be expressed because it paved the way for a different type of rap. No matter how explicit the lyrics were, they needed to be said in order for a different type of voice to be heard.
Although hip hop originated on the east coast, the west coast brought about a new style of hip hop. The west coast introduced hip hop to gangsta rap and g-funk. Gangs were originally formed in order to change the hip hop community for the better. Gangs were also formed due to political activism and racial strife in the late 1980's. Gangsta rap sent out messages concerning politics and how the government was unfair to the hip hop community. Artists such as N.W.A. and Eazy-E were some of the artists who served as a voice in the hip hop community through gangsta rap.
The West Coast had a tremendous impact on hip-hop. During the 1980s, extremely vocal African-American artists like Too Short, Ice-T, and N.W.A. were providing the community with essentially a soundtrack to their lives. These artists were from the west coast, particularly Los Angeles, California. They discussed police brutality, poverty, drugs, the government, and all other issues that black youth and families were facing at the time. West coast artists like 2Pac discussed political issues, and tackled tough subjects like teen pregnancy and abortion. The birth of "gangsta rap" took place in the west coast, and this is still a prevalent rap form today.
However, the west coast culture and artists' influence extended outside of hard subjects. Artists like Mc Hammer paved the way for rappers to cross over into the pop genre, and we definitely see this today with some of our most popular hip-hop artists. Overall, west coast rappers placed the problems of the black community on the airways and got the attention of their peers as well as the political authority figures. Gangsta rap received a great deal of backlash because of songs such as "Fuck the Police" and groups with names like "Niggas wit Attitude." However, because the west coast culture artists were so bold and begin to set the standard to be able to discuss whatever you wanted, artists today can exercise that same freedom.
By 1986, there were so many long beach arena riots which caused KDAY radio station to sponsor a anti-gang radio show with Run DMC and Barry White. Many people were calling for peace rallies but gang activity was still on the rise. Violence grew among and between races and translated into the rap music music heard that time. Artists such as NWA and Ice T with explicit lyrics promoted the parent music resource center(pmrc)to act against their lyrics. The pmrc pressured the record industry to put advisory stickers on explicit records. Consequently, it made those explicit records seem more desirable to listen to.
The west coast had a great influence on hip hop. It brought something new to the table NY and the rest of the east weren't bringing. With situations like the Rodney King beating, the murder of Latasha Harlins, all the police brutality, and the 690 Blacks dead due to gang violence, the west coast was fighting its on war. The MCs of the west had a different approach because, though universally oppression related, they were living a different life and they brought it with a different sound.. "gangsta rap".
Factors of the West coast culture such as increasing gang violence, increasing racial tension, police brutality and drugs were key elements of how the west coast's brand of hip hop and rap was able to impact hip hop. These factors helped shape some the most uncut and explicit lyrics ever talked about on songs by groups or artists such as NWA, Ice Cube, Snoop Dogg,Tupac and Ice T. Their lyrics expressed their displeasure with the government, their enemies and the state of the Black community and this was not welcomed by mainstream America and also caused uproar among the political community.
Similar to the formation of the gangs of the Bronx, the Western Coast gangs were a product of “the ashes and ruins of the sixties” according to former Crip Sanyika Shakur. Contrary to the belief, gangster rap and post-industrialized gangs were not created in the streets of Compton, California but were administered within the desolate community of Watts, California. Watts was one of the most impoverished communities in which the African-American race was formed to reside during the racial injustices of the early nineties. Although they had similarities, there were apparent differences within the foundation behind Hip-hop within the different regional based cultures. For instance, the West Coast were not known to b-boying, but they were known for their smooth style of dancing known as popping which eventually transfigured into cripping.
Both coast served the same purpose with their musical styles, but their artistic skills were used with different tactics. The East Coast provided music that was meant to uplift the community and the mindset of the African-American, whereas the West Coast artists explained firsthand accounts of what they had to endure growing up and on a continuous basis. Ultimately, the politics of the United States continued to affect both coast in the form of racial profiling and the injustices of the Reaganomic policies. According to the book, the Southern Hemisphere’s Foreign policy allowed the slumlords of the communities to enhance their illegal activities through the forms of gang violence, drug distribution, which led to the drastic increase in homicides within the streets of the lower class Los Angeles areas.
As a result, artists such as Ice T, Ice Cube, N.W.A., and others began to explain how the American Dream for them is a realistic nightmare through such songs as “Fuck the Police”. The timely beating of Rodney King opened the eyes of a nation to the underground racial profiling of the African-American male as they were, and still are, forced to endure the illegal acts of illegitimate individuals with badges that could not walk the streets without their political and governmental support. Unfortunately, both coasts developed a beef over who was the better hip-hop influence rather than allowing their abilities to unite a race that has been historically raped by the government. Despite the untimely deaths of two of the greatest MCs in the Rap game, we are still watching immature niggers from the hood with the “gift of gab” provide the world with a false depiction of who they are and allow these lifestyles to consume them into a life that most of them have no idea of.
The impact that the west coast had on hip hop was the gangster rap music. Mc's in the west coast changed the game by talking about another side of life that they experience and made it public. This being a little different and more explicit from what was the norm.
As everyone knows, Hip Hop originated in the Bronx back in the early 1970’s, but as it was described in the reading, Hip-Hop got its shine from the west coast. During the 70’s and early 80’s rap music was a way to get that word out. During the time of cats such as Eazy-E and Dr. Dre, music was the voice of reasoning. When we think of West Coast rap what’s the first thing to come to mind? One will immediately think about Compton, drugs, heavy gang activity, the huge separation caused by a major radicalized community, and the political actions that were taking place during this time. Talk about living in a time where it was hard for one to walk to the store and back home safely without a single gun wound and a wallet with a couple of dollars. We are talking about a time where it was hard to get the word out and attempt to bring everyone together as one because it was every man for themselves during those times. All this was occurring all over the West Coast and the cats were eager to get on the mic and spit 16 bars on the single truth. This new style of rapping and a hot beat hit the mainstream at full force.
Whenever I think of west coast culture, I think about the conflict that occurred with the east coast. Although hip hop originated in the Bronx, the west coast gave it that gangsta appeal. While east coast had their four components of hip hop: DJing, b-boying, graffiti, and (?), the west coast hit hip hop with that in your face mentality causing controversy that lead all the way to the White House. N.W.A. was a controversial title in itself and lyrics as bold as "Fuck the Police" had never hit the mainstream level. Another major way in which west coast affected hip hop culture is in the 2Pac-Biggie beef. Pac spent alot of time on the east coast before he made his "home" on the west coast. To this day, the deaths of two of hip hop's greatest are unsolved, yet it hasn't seemed to affect the violence in not only east coast-west coast beefs, but rappers in general. Beef is now a record seller for artists. People are fighting and killing each other over record sales. Blackstar said it best, "What is Beef?"
The West Coast brought a different type of style and aggression that hip hop had never seen before. The music produced originally on the West Coast carried a message of revolution much like Public Enemy without Flava Flav. The music exposed the gangsta lifestyle of the west coast in many urban neighborhoods. They exposed the drug dealers and the fiends that plagued. I recall as a kid Tupac in an interview explaining how West Coast hip hop was reforming hip hop.
"At first it was a hungry kid looking at food going into place. Kid knocks on the door and asks for food. They say no. Then the kid begs and asks to be be fed, and they say no again. Well now its like I'm done asking now, I'm coming in their strapped and I'm taking it." -Tupac-
This new way of expressing the message was really popular and grew fast. Niggas With Attitude (N.W.A.) Straight Outta of Compton was raising the attention of the Government and people began to give attention to what was going on in the hood. I'm not saying the East Coast didn't raise eyebrows, but the West raised a lot of important eyebrows, and from there, they just ran with it. Artist after artist and hit after hit, the West Coast came hard and didn't raise up for a good minute.
Well like other coast cultures, west coast had a major impact on Hip Hop as well. This was a time of political injustice and hatred forming around the black community. Gang wars, drugs, and riots were all taking place in the west coast. The black community was being destroyed by their own people. A form of hip hop emerged called gansta rap which originated in Watts. This was a form of political speech from artists that might not have been considered "politically correct". Words were expressed toward cops and the government that America did not agree with. It was a form of artistic realness in the black community. Artists could express their true experiences of how society turned their back on them and ways they survive in a country that's designed for them to fail. West coast brought hip hop to a higher level that was not all about dancing, beats, and parties; but about knowledge, power, and empowerment.
West Coast culture has had a humongous impact on Hip Hop. It originated during the 1980's as an outcry to political and racial oppression, racial strife and economic hardship on the West Coast. It brought attention to issues in the black community that the government had ignored.
Racial oppression was especially evident in the song "Fuck the Police" by NWA. Eventhough black music prior the the inception of "gangsta rap" had always had them of oppression, west coast rap offered a more authentic, harsh in your face view of black reality. This caused the United States government to try to silence rap artist by claiming them to be deliquent thugs, when in actuality they were voicing concerns about their communtiy that had been ignored by mainstream society.
"It's not about a salary, it's all about reality."
The west coast was something extraordinary when gangsta rap was forming. The after effect of Reagan's administration carry all the way over to the west coast
With no where to go black entrepreneur found ways to make money to keep blacks out of white neighborhood and more. Niggas With Attitude (N.W.A) starting rapping about alot things that everyone on the west coast was going through. You can say in their rhymes they talked about the things alot of other people didn't want to discuss, like the Riots, beating KKK, the dope game, illegal arms deals, corrupt cops and more.
Artist like Ice Cube, Ice-T and more found a way to tell their stories through rhymes and reason and some through the voice of Eric Wright which many know as Easy E. The west coast culture impacted Hip-Hop in some many ways and it was very different from anything like the east coast. We're talking about gangs, gangs war, hate crime, riots, beating, shooting and more. Black community where being destroyed and white didn't want them no where around.
The gangs on the west-coast had a huge influnece in hip-hop. According to the reading "For Los Angeles's war-weary youths, the ganag truce and the Uprising unleashed a burst of creative energy"(382). Many artists such as DJ Quick, Above The Law, etc, were very popular. Other foprms of expression such as : grafiti, spoken word, street fashion were hitting the streets and becoming an outlet for urban youth in LA.
Both west coast and east coast Hip Hop seemed to develop during horrendous and difficult times for people of color, especially Blacks, in urban areas. When the term Gangsta Rap was developed in the late 80s west coast Hip Hop took a different stance. Groups like NWA began to separate themselves from Hip Hop as a whole and declared they were the voice of the "man on the corner". Artist from that region seemed to follow this as well. Personally, I never thought West Coast rap was Hip Hop I always thought it to be Gangsta Rap and it should be separated from being defined as Hip Hop. That’s like saying Jazz and the Blues are the same thing.
West coast rap is definitely more vulgar, violent, "narrative specific, more coded in local symbol and slang". Definitely different than east coast Hip Hop.
As I read I remembered NWAs "Respect Yourself" and the infamous "All in the Same Gang" (both songs I loved as a kid) and wonder what made them want to create these tracks.
The west coast culture impacted Hip Hop a lot especially in the 1990's because I can remember as a little girl the rap battles between the East coast rappers and the West coast rappers. As a child I did not really understand what was going on but I just knew that it seemed really pointless to me. The West coast took hed to the hip hop culture and they made it their own by discussing gang violence and political issues in their songs. Personally it was like a transformation from the east coast rappers and their hip hop seemed more lively and some what violent. I think it was artists like Dr. Dre, Eazy-E, Snoop Dog and many others who started this west coast movement in hip hop and they were determined to make their names known and leave an impact on hip hop and I believe thats why we have so many different genres of hip hop music.
Gangsta rap was a postindustrial phenomenon that happened in wake of the Watts riots. It could been seen as the alternative to Black Power. Gangsta rap but to be be more specific NWA was the voice of what Black people were feelin when it cam to local and national government. Their song 'Fuck the Police' was a more so political statement as well as an anthem to people feeling the heat from 5-0. Rappers often defend themselves by saying that they're only depicting actual inner-city struggles, not promoting violence. Gangsta rap took what was already being said about inner city communities and amplifying it by a thousand, so t hey could get a reaction from everyone.
The West Coast culture made important contributions to Hip-Hop in positive and in somewhat negative ways. To me, the early and most known West Coast rappers definitely had conscious lyrics that really made the public (white folks) start listening to what the black youth were talking about in their rap lyrics. Unfortunately, the public (white folks) became terrified…and that’s when rap/Hip-Hop music changed. I think the East Coast rappers always had conscious artists, but it wasn’t until the West Coast rappers emerged with their down right, conscious, “FUCK THE POLICE” messages that Hip-Hop started to take a negative connotation by popular culture. N.W.A. and especially Ice Cube were rappers from the West Coast that had empowering lyrics for all Black youth. It just seems like a lot of the West Coast rappers (and rappers in general) contradicted themselves by voicing their self-empowering messages while degrading black females.
DR. PATTERSON,
COULD YOU PLEASE POST THESE VIDEOS ON THE BLOG?!?
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=I0CcuQwDLiM
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=pNPBsuXDXnQ
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=zZZ6irsxiwQ
http://video.google.com/videoplay?docid=-7269075797786828532
West Coast culture impacted hip hop in a lot of political ways. When Ice Cube released amerikkka's most wanted, which was an album produced by The Bomb Squad, who worked with Public Enemy, all hell broke loose. Number one, no one thought his album would do well after his split form NWA and people were pissed off about the way Cube voiced his political views in his songs. He offended whites, Koreans and blacks alike with this ideologies. As one of the most influential west coast rappers of the early 90s, Cube took endorsement to another level. He cruised on the foundation laid by groups like Run DMC, as he endorsed St. Ides malt liquor, adding to the commercialism of hip hop. I respected Cubes views, although I didn't agree with everything he was saying in his music, but I really felt he punked out by apologies to the Korean store owner organization in order to put more money in his pockets through his endorsements. His actions, made it be known, that at the end of the day, all the politics behind the music means nothing, if he was willing to throw it out into the trash and say "lets unite the communities" just so they could run his ads again and make him money. Though we made strides to open up people's eyes through the gritty lyrics of the gangsta rap craze, I feel that Cube, a pioneer in the west coast hip hop game, fell short by not sticking to his guns, and punking out for a quick dollar.
When it comes to hip hop and its influences there are many factors that wat in. But one of the main factors that help make hip hop what it is, was the west coast. Although hip hop was founded on the east coast, the west coast brought a different aspect to it. The east coast focused on spreading the word and getting it out to the public. Where the east coast brought the feel. The west coast brought an aspect of realness that people had not approached yet. With rappers like Eazy-E, Ice-T, Dr. Dre, and Ice Cube on the east to help bring the needed flavor to hip hop. These rappers talked about sex, drugs and violence. They talked about things that some people were afraid to talk about. The east condoned a "F" the police and government that other were afraid to condon. The east focused of on the issues that truly lied within the black community. There was no sugar icing the truth. If it was not the truth the East was not about it.
When I think of West coast rap I think of Gansta Rap. I feel that the artists on the west coast to a more bold and aggressive approach to rapping. They were against the establishment but did not sugar-coat their rhymes with witty and creative witsticisms. This style as Chang indicated is indicative of the music of NWA and Ice T. The crime and police injustice and brutality of LA as they come across in these songs are ruthless as in most urban areas of the time. West Caost rap made the Gansta attitude come alive in their music with heavy bass lines and edgy metal driven beats. LA during this time had a lot of gang activity, racism, and supression by the government in the low income typically minority inhabited areas. West Coast artists spoke vivdly about participating in the violence and gunplay of the times. They seemed to be true ganstas talkin about gansta things. This set them apart from the more subtle east coast rap that was popular originally.
West Coast culture impacted hip hop in a great way. They gave the gritty, harsh reality of what goes on in their communities. They gave way to the ever so criticized "gangsta" rap. It was popular, especially resonating within the black community because they were able to relate with all the issues involved. They held nothing back and showed their exact frustrations. Opposers didn't like this notion, and labeled the music as negative as they rallied against it and tried to silence the voice of the black youth.
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